Effa Tambenkongho
1 October 2008
The revelation was made during a meeting to examine the administrative and financial situation of the council.
The members of the Douala IV Council board have complained of a drop in the council taxes. They were speaking during the two sessions of the Municipal council meeting to examine the administrative account for the financial year 2007 and the extra ordinary session to examine the financial situation which is a major preoccupation of the council.
In a speech presented by the Mayor of the Douala IV Council, Ndangle John Kumase, he outlined some problems of the council. The Mayor announced the amount of money they met in the coffers when they officially took over on 10 October 2007.
He said they got an expert who gave a data of eligible tax payers from which they were able to assess the outcome of what could be collected as taxes. All these actions, he said, retarded their development plans for Douala IV.
Kumase said they took over the council at a time it had to benefit from subventions and this, they saw, as an advantage over their predecessors. But on the other hand, he said, they had a reduction of FCFA 90million from their own share. Thus, instead of receiving FCFA 240 million, they received FCFA 150 million. He added that councils like Douala I and II which have the same population as Douala IV for the first and second trimesters have already received about FCFA 60 million of the subventions while Douala IV has received just FCFA 22 million.
The Mayor said due to the fact that their council is based in an industrial zone, they are supposed to benefit from more profit, but he said it is a paradox. He said local taxes are collected by the Direction of .taxes and deposited at the City Council.
Finally, he said with the City Council's mission to fight against urban disorder, most of their potential tax payers have moved away and it is a disadvantage to the Douala IV Council.
The Mayor promised to address the issue of the reduction of their subvention to the right authorities. He said they need this increase so as to pay their dues at the Social Insurance and also increase salaries of council workers.
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